Love in the Shadows

Chapter Four

(Sam's POV)

My call with Tasha was usually something that started my day on a positive note. Today, it left a sour taste in my mouth.

As I made my way through the station doors, I noticed Lincoln, my boss and our Chief of Police, wasn't in his office yet.

Immediately, hope zipped through my body at the possibility that Josie was back home. Hope, because my friend hadn't handled her absence well. His bear-like demeanour and tendency to burn the midnight oil gave him away.

Never one to lie to myself, most of my elation was a result of the fact that it would mean that the whole task force was back.

I don't think I ever realised what it looks like on the other end, of being with a cop. Not that Lucy and I were together but she was on my mind all the time and since their task force had come into our lives, I had more cop friends to worry about.

I had just poured myself a cup of coffee when Lincoln came strolling through, whistling an off-tune rendition of This Girl Is On Fire.

I had to do a double take and called out as he walked past my office, "I'm sorry, do I know you?" This was a complete turnaround from the asshole I'd been dealing with for the last week, trying to shield everyone else from his short fuse.

He laughed and had the decency to blush. "I think I owe you and a whole lot of other people an apology."

I waved him off. The bulk of Josie's job was now teaching but every once in a while she still went out for a case. It was always hard for Lincoln, but this time... with her being pregnant, it had been extra stressful. I couldn't help but empathise with his struggle. "That's what friends are for. Josie's back? Everyone's okay?"

He raised an eyebrow at me, knowing who in particular I was asking about but paused thoughtfully before he answered. "Everyone came out of it, whole and hearty, thank god. But, they had another close call. The killers went down fighting."

The plural tense wasn't lost on me. Not that long ago, we had a psychopath hunting in our town. It's how Fenelon Falls, the town I lived in, had gotten involved with the task force to begin with. I knew just how rough it had gotten with our own singular monster.

Absolutely insane.

It must have been even worse than I was imagining because I could detect no teasing in his tone, when he asked, "Have you heard from Lucy?"

I hadn't, but the brevity in his voice and the fact that Lucy wasn't one to back down from a fight had me pulling out my phone to text her.

When they had been hunting here, she had been relentless, an absolute bulldozer.

I would pick her as my partner in a fight, my partner in anything, any day.

"She's coming up today. She wants to spend her off time here. Make sure that she's around when the baby arrives." I couldn't miss the twinkle in Lincoln's eyes. "Maybe you should ask her out."

Jesus Christ.

"I didn't know that you had retired your Chief of Police hat. You working for cupid now? Honestly... between you and Tash."

He grinned, his dimples flashing. "That's because we're both brilliant. If you were to ask me, you need to give us more credit. Maybe even listen to your elders."

Neither of them were more than a year older than me and I shook my head. "Okay Dad. How 'bout you get to work and stop worrying about my love life."

He laughed as he walked out, slapping the door frame as he went through. I watched him leave and then clicked on her name, considering what to say.

Me: I hear you are coming up to Fenelon for a bit?

The 3 dots appeared almost immediately and I had to make an effort to tone down the giddiness that I always felt with her.

Lucy: I'll be up late tonight. Staying with Declan and Lee. I want to be there when Josie has the baby and our team is on break for a bit.

I had spent enough time with them that I knew that Charlie often tried to give them a break between cases but it didn't always work out. I wondered if this was a forced break or not. I hated the idea that she could be hurting, whether it be emotionally or physically.

Me: How 'bout, I see if everyone is free for dinner tomorrow night at the brewery.

I re-read it before I sent it. I wanted to ask her to dinner, just the two of us but the doubt that she was interested made me wary. I didn't want to ruin our friendship, we had too many mutual friends and I would hate for it to get awkward.

Lucy: I would love that.

My heart sped up.

She would love that.

My fingers were typing before I was even aware of what I was saying. I anxiously watched the 3 dots appear and disappear and appear again, only to disappear all together.

Me: Awesome. It's a date.

Shit.
She had said that she would love it. What did that mean? Seeing me? The whole group. Fuck? I hated this shit.

What if I had just scared her off with the date comment?

I opened my top drawer and tossed in my phone, before I could overthink it to death or worse, end up texting anything else.

I closed the drawer, forcefully ending those kinds of thoughts. I needed to focus on the positive.

Lucy was going to be here tonight and I would see her tomorrow. The rest, I was refusing to worry about.

She said she would love it.

I walked out the door, my smile permanently in place.